


sweet, sweet victory

by hanorganaas



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Han Solo Lives, Hostage Situations, Kidnapping, Rescue Missions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:01:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22074436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hanorganaas/pseuds/hanorganaas
Summary: When Han Solo survives the attempt on his life on Starkiller Base, Kylo Ren decides to use him as a tool to get the map to Luke Skywalker. During the incident, Han and his wife Leia Organa try to come to terms with the idea that their son may be gone for good.
Relationships: Han Solo & Kylo Ren, Leia Organa & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Leia Organa/Han Solo, Poe Dameron & Han Solo
Comments: 6
Kudos: 43





	sweet, sweet victory

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MBlair](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MBlair/gifts).



> This was the fic for the Hanleia Secret Santa 2019! 
> 
> The Prompt was:
> 
> Post- TFA AU where Han doesn't die after his confrontation with Ben/Kylo and somehow manages to get out with Rey, Finn, and Chewie, but without Ben. He soon reaches out to Leia with the bad News.
> 
> After asking my giftee what types of tropes they like in their fics and learning they like rescue missions, I decided to use this prompt with a twist (especially cause I am so mad Han didn't wake up from his nap after TFA). 
> 
> Anyway to my Secret Santa, Happy Holidays, and I hope you enjoy reading this fic as I did writing it!

He thought he was dead.

He _SHOULD_ be dead.

But somehow, like the time he took many blasters to the gut, endured many crashes in ships and speeders and even being frozen in Carbonite, Han Solo was still alive. 

His head was throbbing, his torso felt as though it was on fire. The blinding light shining on his head wasn’t helping either. He tried to sit up to assess how injured he was, but the restraints placed to hold him still on the cold durasteel table.

_Shit,_ he thought. Maybe that was the reason he wasn’t dead yet. He was a hostage

“Han Solo,” A hauntingly familiar voice said, “You are awake.”

Suddenly the light went dim and when Han got his sight back, he was greeted with the sight of his son, no _Kylo Ren_ looming over him. His mask was off this time. It was obvious he had been in battle since the last encounter because there was a big black bandage adorning the left side of his face. It was an instinct, a _father’s instinct_ , to ask what happened and if it hurt, but the time for formalities was long gone.

“I am assuming it’s safe to say you don’t want to go by Ben anymore,” Han groaned as he turned his head away. He didn’t want to look anymore. It was painful knowing what happened to lead him here.

Han flinched when cool leather from gloves touched his skin and jerked his head forward, forcing him to look at him directly into the hollow which was once his son’s eyes. 

“I told you old man,” Ren growled, “your son is dead.”

Han swallowed. He wished he still had hope that his son being alive. After what happened, Han may have survived the ordeal, but any last bit of faith had died instead.

“You made that perfectly clear when you stabbed me with you lightsaber,” He said swallowing the lump in his throat.

Ren shook his head and tutted and the grip on Han’s chin became tighter almost crushing his jaw. 

“No thank you for saving your life?” He taunted, despite having a frighteningly sweet sing-song voice. 

“When you were the one who nearly killed me,” Han spat, “why am I still alive?”

Ren chuckled lowly and quickly his tune changed. Gentle, in almost a creepy way, the grip on Han’s chin loosened, the rough leather of the glove brushing over his cheek.

“The fact you survived the fall AND the lightsaber wound surprised me,” Ren lamented, “then again a man who survived carbon freezing can survive anything. Mom always said you were a stubborn nerf herder.”

Han swallowed. _Leia._ He had promised her he would bring their son home and he failed at that, just as he failed to keep his family together. If he were to make it out of this too, he didn't know how he could face her after such a sorry excuse for an attempt. But he pushed down the shame he felt at his failure down. 

By twist of fate…..maybe the force, he was still alive. Now that he survived yet another one in a long line of attempts to take his life, he needed to survive this too. Clenching his jaw, he held his nerve, looking up at the monster that was once his son with venom in his eyes. 

“When Hux and I found you in the snow I was going to take my lightsaber and finish the job,” Ren continued, “but then I realized I had a valuable tool to get _mother_ to hand over the map to Luke Skywalker. You. She saw what I did to you through the Force most likely and if she did she will do anything to make sure she doesn’t come close to losing you again. So I had you brought back to base, thrown in a BACTA tank, and now…..I am going to use you to get what I want.”

Han could feel the color drain from his face. That’s why he was still alive, to force Leia to make a choice, her brother or the love of her life: blood or heart. It was clear to him that putting Leia in such a difficult position was a sign that Kylo Ren’s cruelty knew no bounds. It almost frightened Han it took this long to know that.

“Kill me,” Han growled. Screw survival, screw the Force. He could feel his body tense up with rage. It always did when Leia got involved. He wanted to rip the binds and strangle the life out of Kylo Ren to the point that maybe his son would still be in there, “finish the job. I won’t let you use me to put Leia in a position where she loses either way.” 

“Believe me old man it would give me great pleasure to stab you again,” Ren sighed with regret, “but I rather get my revenge on dear Uncle Luke for trying to murder me. Now if you excuse me...now that you are awake, I must begin my arrangements to get into communication with the Resistance. After all, mother will be _thrilled_ to know that you are alive.”

Ren finally released Han’s face and made a few rough taps on his face - hard enough to feel light a slap and light enough to not leave a sting. Han furrowed his brow, his eyes burning a hole into Ren as waltzed out of the interrogation chamber. 

As the door shut behind the monster, Han took a deep shuddering breath. 

Knowing what he knew now, he wished the moment he saw his son on that bridge, he hightailed it back to the _Falcon_ with Chewie and forget he ever saw anything.

* * *

“General Organa,” Rey said through the holoradio, “Finn, Chewie and I have just landed on Ach’too. There is no sign of Master Skywalker yet, but we are going to take a look around. I am sure there is going to be a clue somewhere.”

“Well keep me updated,” Leia responded, “Another great victory over the First Order is always welcomed. May the Force be with you.”

She sighed and leaned back in her seat. Yes finding Luke Skywalker, her brother, would spell a major victory for a resistance. He was the only one powerful enough to defeat Snoke. And once Snoke was defeated the rest of the First Order would follow.

But in all honesty she needed a victory for herself. What happened on Starkiller Base between the husk of a man that was once her son and Han, the love of her life, wore her down in a way her personal tragedies she had dealt with in the past have done before. She didn’t know if it was the fact that it was her fault that Han was stabbed and pushed to his death or the fact there was a pathetic side of her that believed he could STILL be out there.

That’s what hurt the most about this. Leia searched through the force to find him. See if his soul was at rest so that one day, when she became one with the force herself she would join him. She should have taken it for what it was, Han didn’t have the Force like she did. 

But yet, the foolish side of her, who always believed in hope just wasn’t ready to let go. And she hated it, because she knew she was going to be disappointed, just like when she was disappointed when she believed Ben was going to come back from the light. 

She should just give up before this false hope lost her the war.

“General Organa,” Leia lifted her head to see one of her most trusted officers Kaydel Connix standing in the doorway. She knew something was wrong by the look on one of the young Lieutenant’s face. “We have received a transmission from Kylo Ren, he says he has a hostage.”

Usually Leia wouldn’t take any sort of parley with the enemy, even if was being broadcast by her son, but there was something inside her telling her this was a call she wanted to take.

* * *

Leia hated the fact there was a twinge of concern at how beaten and haggard Ben looked in the holovideo. She wasn’t surprised at the state of her son’s injury. Rey had told her about the fight on Starkiller where she slashed his face and left him for dead, but like all mothers Leia naturally felt alarmed at her son’s injury. 

She wasn’t dealing with her son however, it was clear to her the moment Ben - no - Kylo Ren drove his lightsaber through Han, she was dealing with a war criminal. She pushed down any latent motherly feelings trying to make their way to the surface and starred with a furrowed brow at the image in front of her.

“Lord Ren,” Leia said sternly.

“Looks like you learned faster than father did, _mother_ ,” Ren taunted, “old fool had the nerve to call me _Ben_ in front of the scavenger and the traitor.”

Already she could feel the rage, the same rage that turned Leia’s birth father into Darth Vader. The rage that almost tipped her to the same position that her son was in now. She felt her hands curl into fists, her fingernails digging into her palms. The same method she had often used when she was angry to stop her from tipping to the Dark Side. She had to keep herself grounded, and let that emotion out when she was safe in the privacy of her quarters.

“What do you want?” Leia said. She could hear a hint of a growl in her voice. 

“Well mother, I have come bearing good news,” Ren answered.

And when he stepped aside revealing a man bound and gagged to a chair, the breath got caught in Leia’s throat. _Han_ , he was alive. The hunch she felt was the force telling her she had been right all along and it wasn’t some false hope she was holding onto. Part of her felt relief that maybe soon, he would be back in her arms again, but the other half knew there was still a danger.

Right now it was crucial to begin the task of rescuing him.

“General,” Connix, who stood beside her shocked at the proceedings, whispered, “Do you want me to see if we could lock a signal?”

Leia keeping her eyes on the screen just nodded. Immediately, the young lieutenant made her way over to where resistance members frantically worked in front of monitors. Hopefully Leia could stall Ren long enough for the Resistance tracking team to lock on a location. 

“What you are seeing is not an illusion,” Ren taunted, “your precious Han Solo is alive...but…it won’t last if you don’t give into my demands.”

This wasn’t the first time Leia found herself in this situation with Han. She knew this sigh of relief that she may not lose him after all wouldn’t last. There would have to be a trade to secure his safety. 

And she already knew where this conversation was going. 

“I know what you want,” Leia said sternly, “You want the map to Luke Skywalker. It’s pointless because we already found the planet he had exiled himself to. But give me time and we can work out another way to Negotiate my husband’s release.”

She would do almost anything and everything to make sure Han back. She would blow up a planet, even if it brought back horrible memories at the loss of Alderaan. She would let the darkside devour her like a rancour. But she didn’t know if she had the strength to choose between protecting her brother from the First Order or saving her Husband’s life.

She would lose either way.

“I am not willing to wait that long,” Ren growled, “so let me make your decision a bit more hasty.”

Not a seconds pause, he ignited his crude lightsaber. Leia could hear a loud muffled cry of fear. Her eyes set on Han. He was tensed up. His hands gripped so hard to the chair he was strapped to. What killed Leia was the look in his eyes, which was frighteningly emphasized by the leather strap wrapped around his mouth and buckled at the back of his head. They were usually so full of confidence and joy, twinkling every time she gazed upon them.

Now they were wide and tear-filled, and full of terror and pain.

Leia flashed back to what she saw on that bridge. The lightsaber going through Han’s stomach. The look of shock and pain knowing his son had just turned on him. It broke Leia to the point where she couldn’t stand, collapsing in front of everyone in the war room. 

She couldn’t go through that again.

“Wait,” Leia rasped out, not taking time to chide herself for making a huge mistake, a mistake if she didn’t act fast enough would lose her the war. “I’ll give you the map, just don’t kill him.”

A wry smile flashed on Kylo Ren’s lips.

“Wise decision mother,” He bellowed proudly knowing he just broke her, “you or one of your Resistance scum bring me the map on Takadona in 12 hours, if you are not there by then, the agreement will be voided and Han Solo’s Corpse will be left for you to retrieve ...speak to you soon.”

When the transmission blipped off the war room on the Resistance was in complete and utter silence. Leia could read the emotions of everyone in the room. Fear, pain, shock, the idea that the Resistance was in trouble because their general thought with her heart rather than her head. 

“General what have you done?” Leia heard a voice say. She turned her head to see Poe Dameron standing behind her with wide eyes, “You just lost us the war.”

“No….Luke has a better chance of surviving this if we plan this right,” Leia lamented, “Han doesn’t….Captain Dameron, prepare the data you are in charge of the trade off. No questions, I need a moment alone.”

She felt herself exiting the room as fast as her feet could carry her. She needed a moment to accept the decision she just made ... and maybe - away from prying eyes - she could figure out a solution where both Han and Luke made it out alive.

* * *

_This nightmare is almost over...just hang on,_ Han thought as he was roughly manhandled by his son down the ramp of his ship.

In all honesty he had never been so terrified in his life, and yes, it beat out the time where he was frozen in carbonite. He was blindfolded, still gagged by that uncomfortable strap of leather digging into his cheeks, and his hands were bound tightly with durasteel cuffs in front him. Between the enforced blindness, the fact the conditions made it hard for his carbonite damaged lungs to breathe and being dragged roughly by the arm it was hard to keep balance on his feet.

If Kylo Ren just let him have one moment to breathe…..

“It’s too bad we didn’t have more time together,” Ren murmured, “I quite enjoyed learning how you are the only thing that could weaken the GREAT General Organa.”

Han growled beneath the gag and thrashed in Ren’s grip. For the second time that day, he felt rage that someone had the nerve to mock Leia in front of him.

He was quickly stilled and forced to stop dead in his tracks when the grip on his shoulder tightened. 

“But there is something I take solace in,” Ren whispered in Han’s ear as he pushed the hilt of his lightsaber into his prisoner’s back, ready to ignite it when the minute the 12th hour hit, “she will never forgive for your failure that got her brother killed...and you know it.”

Han was held tightly still, yet when he heard those words he felt himself swaying on his feet ready to collapse. He was right, stars, he was so right. Han had promised Leia that if he found their son he would bring him home.

Not only did he fail to do that, but he probably got her brother killed in the process. There was so much they recovered from, even Ben’s fall to the dark side, there was no going back from this. And he was close….oh so close to getting her back after all that time apart. 

There was a part of him that wished the Resistance didn’t come in time.

“Well, well, well,” Ren tutted behind him, “of course mother sent the quote unquote son she replaced me with to collect her garbage.”

“Cut the shit Ren,” The voice of Poe Dameron snapped now. Han didn’t know if he was relieved he was here, or disappointed he now had to face Leia. “I have the map you want, now hand over General Solo and we can both part ways.”

“With pleasure…” Ren hummed. A moment later Han felt his body being shoved into Poe’s arms. Had the pilot not caught him, he would have fallen face first in the dirt. “Send my mother my regards.”

He felt Poe pull him a little closer for a moment, probably to comfort him. Han could feel his body shaking as his heart raced 12 parsecs per minute from the emotions and fear. Surprisingly it was welcomed.

“You alright?” Poe asked. Han nodded. It was a lie. He was a wreck. “Unfortunately I don’t have time to untie you, so I am going to have to do it when we get on the ship. Don’t worry...I’ll guide you.”

The pilot moved at a brisk pace. But he was much gentler than Kylo Ren was, only gripping tightly when Han tripped a few times in the darkness to bring him back on balance. They couldn’t have walked more than five minutes before the familiar sound of Dameron’s astromech droid BB-8 indicated they were at the getaway ship. 

Han almost collapsed when Poe guided him to a comfortable seat and buckled him in.

“Is it okay if I leave you tied up for another minute?” Poe inquired once again, “I need to get the ship in the air as quickly as possible.”

Han nodded. It honestly didn’t matter to him. He was so exhausted from his nerves and his emotions putting him through the ringer he was seconds away from falling asleep. He closed his eyes behind the blindfold as he heard footsteps exiting the room. He soon felt the rumbling of the ship beneath his feet. 

He adjusted himself to get comfortable, but as went to lean back in his seat a familiar pair of lips gently landed on his forehead. 

His eyes opened abruptly, even though they were still covered. He knew that kiss. Just like he knew the feel of those soft fingers that brushed over his cheeks and moved to the back of his head to undo the buckle of the gag. 

“You always loved this part when I rescued you,” A voice said. The restricting leather was removed from his lips, and Han felt himself taking in breathfuls of air. “You said there was something beautiful and intimate about me untying you. You felt the safest knowing the person who loves you the most came to save you and refused to leave you behind.”

“Leia,” Han rasped.

Leia’s lips landed on his forehead once again. 

“Close your eyes for a few minutes so they can adjust to the light,” She commanded gently. Han obeyed. He could feel a few stray tears escaping behind closed lids as the cloth unravelled from his head. He didn’t know if it was sorrow or relief. Immediately Leia’s fingers brushed them away “Hey it’s alright you’re safe.”

“I got Luke killed,” Han sighed.

“We only gave the First Order a partial map. Rey and Finn had just finally convinced Luke to get off Ach’too and are leaving at nightfall. They’ll be gone by the time Snoke figures it out and uses the data and gets the real location.”

“I failed to bring Ben home like you wanted me to.”

“It doesn’t matter, I have you.”

“Are you saying that because I almost died?”

Han felt the durasteel cuffs fall from his wrists. Leia brought them to her lips, kissing away the angry red welts that were probably there from struggling.

“I lost so much Han Solo,” Leia whispered against his skin, “I lost my birth mother the day I was born, I lost my planet, my parents and my childhood in an instant. I lost my son to the darkness. I lost my brother because he was ashamed of letting it happened…and yes I lost you too.”

She paused to rest her hand on Han’s face, her thumb gently running over his scar on his chin. She often done this during intimate moments. 

“But when I did you always came back to me,” She continued, “When Vader froze you in Carbonite, I got you back. When we drifted apart after Ben’s fall, we found each other again. And when I thought you died, well, here you are. Your love for me is the one thing that keeps me going, and if you are all I have left I am the happiest woman alive.”

Han opened his eyes without warning. He wanted to see if Leia was pulling his bluff, pretending to be kind only to be frowning in dismay. But when his eyes adjusted to the light he could see the beautiful smile on her lips. The one that would often light up even the darkest of rooms. Her eyes sparkling in happiness. 

Han felt a smile graze his own lips. For the first time that day, he felt relieved and lucky to be alive.

“I love you,” He sighed happily.

“I know,” Leia replied.

Han rested his hand on her face and leaned in to kiss her, feeling a euphoria knowing they were finally starting over and they had their whole lives ahead of them. 

He didn’t fail her after all. In fact, victory never tasted so sweet.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed the fic, I might play around more in this universe if people are interested.
> 
> Anyway as I am hoping to write more One Shots please feel free to send me prompts of the Hanleia Flair on Tumblr at
> 
> http://melindamaay.co.vu/ask


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